Road tripper's guide to 2018 construction season for Minnesota's Twin Cities region
Planning to hit the road this summer? You might want to make sure your trip won't cross the orange cones. Here's a summary of MnDOT's big construction projects in the state.
Keep in mind that construction projects can both be delayed or finish early. Consider this only as a guide, and we'll try our best to keep it updated throughout the year. For the latest construction information, check out MnDOT's current construction website. Or call 511 for travel information.
We also aren't able to track all the local construction projects. These projects are mainly handled by or in partnership with the state transportation department.
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Twin Cities Regional (MnDOT Metro District)
Highway 3 near Inver Grove Heights
Highway 3 is closed between Highway 149 and Highway 55 from May 13 through 2018. The work will reconstruct the highway and modify the intersection at County Road 71 and Rich Valley Blvd. The cost is estimated to be $5.2 million and will last from mid-May until fall 2018.
Highway 7 near Hopkins, Minnetonka and St. Louis Park
From May 16 through August, a free right turn lane from Fifth Avenue North in Hopkins to Highway 7 will be closed. And through to September, lane closures will occur as well as limited access to local streets. Starting May 29, access to Oak Ridge Road and 5th Avenue North will be temporarily closed, along with the ramp from westbound Highway 7 to Baker Road. More details on this estimated $6 million project can be found at MnDOT's website.
Highway 8 Drainage Improvement Projects from Forest Lake to Taylors Falls
In late August, Highway 8 will close for one week between Hazel Avenue and Pioneer Road, Green Lake Trail and County Road 23. In September, the highway will close for one week between the south Interstate Park entrance and Valley View Lane. The project is expected to last until December.
Highway 10 Anoka to Elk River cable median barrier
From April to August, work will install cable median barrier between Thurston Avenue and Highway 101. The work will result in temporary lane closures during off-peak times, and shoulder closures during peak hours may be required.
Highway 10 Arden Hills
The project will construct a third lane on eastbound Highway 10 between Interstate 35W and County Road 96. The project also includes two noise walls being built along the south side of the eastbound highway. Non-peak lane and shoulder closures will occur during the work, though specific dates have not been determined. The project cost is estimated at $2.6 million.
Interstate 35 North Metro split from Lino Lakes to Forest Lake
This project will resurface the existing pavement, replace the Highway 97 bridge over Interstate 35 with a diverging diamond interchange, update crosswalks at Highway 97, and replace the flyover ramp from westbound Highway 8 to southbound I-35 with a loop ramp. This is a multi-year project expected to last until late 2019, with an estimated cost of $50 million.
Interstate 35 Minnesota River Bridge
Construction on the project on Interstate 35 West between Cliff Road in Burnsville and 106th Street in Bloomington will begin in July. This work will likely cause congestion and temporary lane closures and detours. This project will reconstruct the I-35W bridge spanning the Minnesota River, and the bridge spanning 106th Street. Pavement will be replaced from Cliff Road to 106th Street, and build a northbound auxiliary/truck lane. This $127 million project is expected to last until fall of 2021. The specifics on closures and impacts will be available at the MnDOT website.
County Road I and Interstate 35W between Arden Hills and Shoreview
The work on County Road I and Interstate 35 West between Arden Hills and Shoreview continues this year from 2017. This is a project that Ramsey County and MnDOT are working on in partnership. The project will build a new frontage road along the east side of I-35W between County Road H and County Road I, and construct a roundabout on County Road I at Rice Creek Parkway east of I-35W.
Interstate 35W and Interstate 94 Downtown to Crosstown
This multi-year project is expected to last through fall of 2021. Road closures will occur from May 7 through mid-June at 4th Avenue between 12th Street and 14th Street. The left lane on northbound I-35W will be closed from 26th Street into downtown Minneapolis. And through August, the 38th Street Bridge is closed over I-35W. (Detour suggestions are available here.) Additional closures will occur throughout the season. Check MnDOT's website for more information.
Interstate 35W Resurfacing from Minneapolis, St. Anthony, Roseville
Interstate 35 West between 4th Street SE and County Road C will be resurfaced in Hennepin and Ramsey counties from July 13 to October. All lanes will be open during morning and evening rush hours, but ramp and lane closures will occur during nighttime hours. No lane or ramp closures will occur over the 4th of July, Minnesota State Fair or Labor Day weekends. The estimated cost for the project is $17 million.
Highway 36 Stillwater Lift Bridge
The Stillwater Lift Bridge of the St. Croix River between Stillwater, Minn. and Houlton, Wis. is closed to all traffic. The construction on the bridge is expected to last until June 2019. Once completed, the bridge will serve as a pedestrian and cycling bridge, as traffic will be diverted to a new bridge. The bridge will still operate to accommodate marine traffic.
Highway 95 Stillwater construction
This project is part of the St. Croix Crossing project, and Highway 95/Main Street North in Stillwater will be closed from Myrtle Street to Mulberry Street. In mid-June, Highway 95 will be closed from north of Highway 36 to Nelson Street for about three weeks.
Highway 41 Chaska construction
Carver County is leading the way on this project that will reconstruct and expand the road, and improve the intersection in the Jonathan area. From early June until September Highway 41 will be closed from Hundertmark Road and to Pioneer Trail. Find more details on the detour here.
Highway 47 Minneapolis to Columbia Heights
From May 22 to June 15, Highway 47/University Avenue from Lowry Avenue to 32nd Avenue will be closed. Passenger vehicles are asked to travel Highway 65 to Central Avenue. The work will focus on road resurfacing and sidewalk rams improved at 27th and 37th avenues.
Highway 50 — Highway 3 in Farmington to Highway 52 in Hampton
On Highway 50 between Hampton and Farmington, crews will add right turn lanes at a number of roads, modify intersections at County Road 80 and County Road 81, and resurface the highway. Expect lane closures starting from late April to late August from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The project is expected to cost $6 million.
Highway 52 from Coates to Cannon Falls
Construction on this project began in 2017, and most of the work remaining on this project will require short-term lane closures. MnDOT added a reduced conflict intersection and added cable median barriers. Access to both County Road 46 and County Road 86 has also been modified. The project is estimated to cost $6.3 million.
Highway 55 Rockford to Theodore Wirth Parkway
Highway 55 from the Hennepin/Wright County Line to Theodore Wirth Parkway in Minneapolis, a stretch of about 23 miles, will see short-term lane closures as crews add safety improvements. No full lane closures or detours are expected. The project is expected to cost $1.9 million
Renaming Highway 55, Highway 110 to Highway 62
Starting in July 2018, a section of highway that includes Highway 62 west of Fort Snelling, Highway 55 over the river, and Highway 110 will be renamed to all be part of Highway 62. Some sections of the highway will be labled as "Old Highway 110 or dual signed as part of a transitioning period. Traffic is expected to be minimally affected by the installations of the signs. The cost is estimated at $30,000.
Highway 62 and Highway 212 Eden Prairie and Edina
The highway will be resurfaced from July to late October, and the pedestrian crossing at Beach Road will shift to the west of the intersection instead of the east. Drivers can expect lane, shoulder and road closures with detours. MnDOT expects that the work will likely cause congestion. The project is estimated to cost $7.7 million.
Highway 65 Blaine, Ham Lake, and East Bethel
Starting in July and lasting until October 2019, MnDOT will add a reduced conflict intersection and turn lane improvements on Highway 65 corridor between 85th Avenue in Spring Lake Park and Sims Road in East Bethel. A signalized reduced conflict intersection will be built at Highway 65 and Viking Boulevard.
Check out this video on how reduced conflict intersections work
Interstate 94 Minneapolis noise wall replacement
A noise wall between the Mississippi River and Riverside Avenue resumes this spring and is expected to last until the fall. Ramps from I-94 to Cedar Avenue will close for several weeks, along with ramps from I-94 to Riverside Avenue. The project is expected to cost $2.1 million.
Interstate 94 Minneapolis to Brooklyn Center
This project began in March 2017 and will repair two bridges on I-94 between Shingle Creek Parkway in Brooklyn Center and Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis, as well as repairing the Whitney pedestrian bridge. In 2017, the project resurfaced nine miles of pavement on I-94 and 48 bridges on or over I-94 and entrance and exit ramps. The total project cost $46.3 million.
Interstate 94 St. Paul to Maplewood
The major road construction on this project is complete, but there will still be lane closures through early June from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly on westbound I-94 between Highway 120/Century Avenue and Mounds Boulevard and traffic will be reduced to a single lane. Several entrance and exit ramps will also be closed on the same segment of westbound I-94. The three-year project starting in spring of 2016 has an estimated cost of $52 million.
Highway 95 and Manning Avenue safety improvements
This is a three-stage project on Highway 95 between Highway 61 to Valley Creek Road from 2017 to 2019. This year, work from Bailey Road/County Road 18 to 70th Street/County Road 22 will widen shoulders, construct right turn lanes at 40th, 50th, and 60th streets, resurface existing pavement and additional safety improvements. This year's estimated cost is $3.6 million. Learn more about the project at the MnDOT website.
Highway 169 Belle Plaine and Jordan
Construction on Highway 169 from Highway 282 in Jordan to Highway 19 near Blakely Township will repair or replace pavement and build a reduced conflict intersection at Highway 59/Delaware Avenue. The project will require that Highway 169 be a single lane with head to head traffic traveling on the southbound lanes from south of Highway 25 near Belle Plaine to Highway 19, and on northbound lanes from just north of Highway 25 to south of Highway 282 in Jordan. The project is estimated to cost $18.6 million for the Belle Plaine portion, and $15.7 million in Jordan.
Highway 169 Champlin
The northbound and southbound Highway 169 bridges near Champlin will be replaced, along with other improvements on the highway between East Hayden Lake Rd. and the Mississippi River starting fall 2017 until fall 2018. The southbound Elm Creek Bridge will be closed from May 7 to mid-July, and during the same time traffic will shift to the northbound roadway with a single lane between Highway 610 and the Mississippi River. Once southbound project work is complete in mid-July, the project will close the northbound Elm Creek Bridge and highway, with traffic moving to southbound Highway 169 and bridge. The project cost is not yet listed on the MnDOT project website.
Interstate 494 Inver Grove Heights and South St. Paul
Starting in fall 2018, the Interstate I-494 bridge deck will be widened and resurfaced, and an auxiliary lane on westbound I-494 between Hardman Avenue and west of 7th Avenue. Pavement will also be replaced between Hardman Avenue and 5th Avenue. The project cost is expected to be about $18.7 million.
Interstate 494 and East Bush Lake Road near Bloomington
East Bush Lake Road at the I-494 interchange will see new westbound on-ramp. Development around the Normandale Lake area has seen traffic problems, so a new westbound on-ramp to I-494 is expected to relieve traffic issues. The total cost for this project is $23.8 million, but funding comes from a number of grant and sources.
Traveling to another region in the state? Check out the rest of our construction guide.